


what's up danger

by stylesmakethefight



Series: spider-man au [2]
Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Other, anthony is not based on a real person, don't sue me pls, dotae are a thing but it's not the point, hyuck and taeyong are best bros, hyuck is spiderman, i just wanted to write that scene, it's super badass, spider-man au, the prequel to cameras and city lights, this is hyuck's origin story, this was super fun to write, uncle taeil!, where miles jumps off the building, you know that once scene in into the spiderverse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-13
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:40:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26980783
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stylesmakethefight/pseuds/stylesmakethefight
Summary: Hyuck rubbed at his hand, standing up. He felt normal at least. The spider bite shouldn’t be a problem, maybe some itching, but that was it. He was convinced of it. Gathering up his things, he climbed back down the fire escape, and plunged into the beating heart of the city below.Less than twenty-four hours later, Hyuck was convinced he was going to die.or: spidey-hyuck's origin story based around that one scene from into the spider-verse. you know what scene i'm talking about ;)
Relationships: Lee Donghyuck | Haechan/Everyone
Series: spider-man au [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1969015
Comments: 4
Kudos: 55





	1. take my uni notes for me

“Hyuckie, put down your phone.”

Hyuck looked up from his aimless scrolling, meeting his brother’s stern face from across their little table. Between his notebooks, papers and laptop, and Taeyong’s own collection of magazines and sheets of data and _his_ laptop, their now cold coffees were sadly pushed to the side, all but forgotten.

Hyuck groaned, resting his head on the edge of his laptop. “Please, _please,_ take these notes for me. I’m so sick of writing.” _Slide 15 out of 47_ glared angrily at him from his screen. He was never going to get these done.

Taeyong went back to typing away on his computer. “Isn’t this the last thing you have to do?” Hyuck had watched his brother easily and seamlessly check off task after task during their four-hour work session at their favorite café. Hyuck, unfortunately, managed to cross off one thing on his list; making the list. He had nothing to worry about. His grades in all his classes were near perfect, but he had to work for them each time. And now wasn’t any different.

He groaned again. “What if I slammed my head into this window,” He complained.

“I hope you can pay for property damage.”

Hyuck twisted around the same time Taeyong had that disgusting I’m-madly-in-love smile he pulled whenever they came to this café. Kim Doyoung started his afternoon shift coincidentally the same time Hyuck and Taeyong got off school and work. Which gave plenty of time for him to nag at Hyuck (as if Taeyong didn’t do that already) and to make I’m-madly-in-love eyes at Taeyong. Disgusting.

“Hello again,” Doyoung said smiling with his gums showing. Hyuck watched as the two fools in front of him stared at each other, just grinning without saying any other words.

Hyuck slammed his laptop close. Nothing. They didn’t even blink. He frowned. He reached over and scooped up Taeyong’s pen that was discarded over a pile of sketch paper. Hyuck held it over the air for a moment and then let it drop. It clattered noisily in the rather quiet café, and _still_ , the two didn’t spare him a glance. He sighed loudly, part of him already knowing that neither one of them were going to look in his direction.

“That’s it,” He said, standing up quickly. “I’m taking a break.” He grabbed his coat, slipping it on. “Be back in fifteen,” He murmured.

“Call if you need me,” Taeyong at least managed to say.

“ _Call if you need me_ ,” Hyuck repeated in a higher tone, pushing open the café door. He was met immediately with the bustle of Midtown Manhattan, hundreds of people walking hastily to get to their destinations. Hyuck loved the city. He loved how active it was, how there was something to do almost every day, he loved the skyscrapers, especially when they all dotted the skyline like Christmas lights at night. But what the city lacked, was a moment of stillness. It was dubbed the City That Never Sleeps for a reason. Hyuck knew how to find those moments of stillness, though. It became necessary a many years ago when a too young Taeyong had held a smaller Hyuck in his bed, tears soaking through both of their shirts, while men and women in suits stood in the foyer of their old house, faces cold, and grey.

In fact, it was Taeyong who had shown him where to find quiet places. Their options were super limited, when the surface level contained just as much buzz as underground in the crowded tunnels and stations of the metro trains. So, they had looked up.

Once Taeyong had graduated and saved enough money, they had left their kind uncle who had taken them in when they were younger. Uncle Taeil put Taeyong through college and Taeyong was still working on paying him back for it. On top of that, Taeyong was determined to put Hyuck in college as well. So, there was a lot riding on those unfinished notes Hyuck had left behind at the café.

Taeyong found the first apartment that was high enough and with a balcony and the two of them moved in shortly after. Now, the balcony in Hyuck’s room was their safe place. Their moment of stillness. Neither of them could afford to stop doing what they were doing, but that balcony had given them rest, a break from fighting to keep their heads above waters.

Hyuck climbed the last of the steps of a fire escape, finding himself on a roof of a nearby building. The other great thing about the city was that it had such a horrendous combination of skyscrapers and brick apartments. Hyuck had barely walked five blocks from Times Square before he had found an apartment building with a fire escape leading to the roof.

The building he had chosen was old. He guessed not a lot of people utilized the open roof, which was a shame. He loved being on top of the world. He was at peace. Hyuck sat down at the edge of the roof, letting his feet dangle off the ledge. Down the street, he could see the tall high rises of the city, the impossibly bright lights of Times Square flashing its ads and trailers in rapid motion. Nothing ever really rested in this city.

From here, he could see people walking below him, about the size of his pinky. Cars and yellow cabs zoomed through the neighborhoods, aiming for the city beyond. Even the skyscrapers looked small in comparison to him. Hyuck was at the top of the world, and nothing could touch him here. He took in a deep breath of cold air. Even the air here seemed better, cleaner. A few birds were flying overhead, the ones that stayed back for the cold weather.

_Crazies,_ Hyuck thought. Who would ever decide to stay here for the cold? It was freezing most of winter, and no matter how any scarves Taeyong wrapped around the both of them, they both shivered for several months.

He idly watched a spider web blow in the wind, sticking sturdily to the brick building. The spider itself was nowhere to be found, but the web it had made was glistening, shining in the sunlight. If the rays hit it just right, Hyuck swore he could have been blinded. Weird. He didn’t know of any special spider webs that were like that. And there was no spider. Also very weird.

Hyuck squinted, leaning over to inspect the strange web. It seemed thicker than most webs. This was a milky color, shiny in the light and it looked to be very sticky. He could argue that it was white gum that was stretched out thinly from one side of the brick to the other.

Slowly, he lifted a finger and reached out, curious to find out just how sticky this unusual web was. He was about a half a centimeter away when something sharp pinched down on his other hand.

“Ow!” He hissed, pulling away to inspect his newly hurt hand. A little red bump formed on the back of his hand, swollen, but still small. Hyuck frowned, catching movement beyond his hand on the ledge. He watched as a bluish-whiteish spider scurried away off the side of the ledge, disappearing somewhere below.

Hyuck rubbed at his hand, standing up. He felt normal at least. The spider bite shouldn’t be a problem, maybe some itching, but that was it. He was convinced of it. Gathering up his things, he climbed back down the fire escape, and plunged into the beating heart of the city below.


	2. dress in drag and do the hula

Less than twenty-four hours later, Hyuck was convinced he was going to die.

He stood in front of his bathroom mirror, gripping the edge of the sink where cracks had started to form under his hold. _What is going on?_ Those four words had been ricocheting around his brain for the past hour. He woke up and suddenly he could see everything so clearly, without his glasses. His alarm clock was blaringly loud, enough to hurt his ears. And when he had gone to hit the snooze button, his hand _smashed_ into it, breaking it nearly down the middle. Hyuck’s hand had gotten stuck on the bathroom’s doorknob, and he couldn’t remember even touching any glue recently, so how was any of this happening?

So now, he stood, staring at himself in the mirror, trying to collect his thoughts and calm his racing heart, a discarded doorknob on the side.

It was so weird. He was hearing a million things at once. From his bathroom, he could hear the sound of cars honking in the city a couple miles away, the footsteps of the people who lived next door, even the stray cats eight floors beneath him. Was he really dying? Why could he hear all these things? Hyuck squeezed his eyes shut, clenching his jaw.

He needed to move or he’d be late for school. So with a shaky breath, he loosened all his muscles and exhaled slowly, forcing all the sounds, all the heightened senses he was feeling to the back of his mind. Later, he promised himself, later he’d figure out why this was happening to him.

After splashing cold water onto his face, he gently nudged the door open and went out to meet Taeyong in the kitchen, setting both of their lunches.

“Morning,” Taeyong chirped way too happily for the stressful morning Hyuck was currently having. “I might be late in coming home today, there’s a really important meeting I have to go to,” He informed, hurrying around the kitchen to fill up their water bottles.

Hyuck absent-mindedly rubbed at his head. Taeyong’s heartbeat was _so loud._ “Is that why you’re nervous?” He asked, reaching for a granola bar with the tips of his fingers, afraid that his hand would get stuck to the wrapping as well.

Taeyong winced. “You could tell?”

Hyuck stopped unwrapping. Should he tell him about the weird morning he was having? No, Taeyong was already worried about this meeting. He didn’t need to be thinking about Hyuck’s condition right now. “You’ll be fine,” Hyuck said instead, biting into his granola bar. At least food tasted the same, though he could smell the honey and nuts way more strongly. “Just do what you always do.” He held the bar in his mouth as he scooped up his backpack.

“What would that be?”

Hyuck shrugged, snatching the water bottle off the counter. “Dress in drag and do the hula. I have to go. I’ll see you tonight.”

“ _The hula?”_

Hyuck had a knack for leaving super late and still making it to his destination on time. In the _nick_ of time, but he wasn’t ever later than a minute. So he managed to get his foot into the classroom just as the bell went off, earning a short glance from Mr. Suh. Hyuck smiled sheepishly and took his seat as the announcements rolled on.

Class was long, but Hyuck was thankful that his pencils weren’t sticking to his fingers every time he went to go pick them up. He was fairly sure whatever he had experienced this morning was just a blip out of the ordinary. Everything had returned back to normal now. He’d sit through class, go home, do homework, sleep, and repeat the next day. This was normal.

But towards the end of class, Hyuck began to feel it. Something shocked him within his body, rocking his core enough that he physically jolted. His spine was rigid straight. All of a sudden, he was hearing the thunderous pounds of every student in that room, an irregular pattern echoing around in his head.

 _Oh, no. No, no, no._ He gripped the edge of his desk, breaths coming out in shallow succession. Everything was _so_ loud. Even his own thoughts were screaming against every soft footfall of a student, or the scrape of a pencil across a desk. Mr. Suh’s clicking on the computer was amplified so much that Hyuck heard each click like a gun shot.

What was happening to him? Everything was crystal clear. Every part of him was tingling with what, he didn’t know, but he was near buzzing.

He needed to get out of the room. Hyuck quickly stood up, only to be tugged back into his seat. Great. _Great._ His hands were still stuck to his desk.

“What the fuck?” He whispered under his breath. He was dying. There was no other explanation. That spider must have been poisonous or something, and the poison was kicking in, and now Hyuck was going to literally pass out in his class, and—

“Hey, are you alright?”

A boy with a mop of brown hair appeared in his vision (Hyuck definitely had sensed him earlier though. How was he doing that?) “You’re sweating like crazy, dude,” The boy, Yangyang, his name was, said.

Hyuck grit his teeth, trying to play off his stuck hands, and his need to vomit as coolly as he could. “I’m fine, it’s just a little warm in here,” He said back as politely as he could. He looked past Yangyang. “Hey, could you do me a favor and grab that pencil on the ground for me?”

The other boy turned around bent over, looking for a nonexistent pencil on the ground. Hyuck quickly turned his attention back to his hands. With a deep breath, he pulled on his hands hard, finally getting them to release the desk. He nearly smacked his own face with the momentum. He was out of his seat a second later.

“I don’t see a pencil…” He heard Yangyang say as he yanked open the door, somehow still mindful of his strange strength, and made his way to the closest bathroom. He stumbled inside, grateful to find it empty and rushed to a toilet, retching up everything he had in his stomach.

Seriously, _what_ was happening to him? He leaned back against the stall, panting as his head spun and his vision blotted. He fumbled for his phone, quickly typing in a description of the spider he had seen on the roof earlier. Between catching his breath and blinking away the spots, he managed to scroll and scroll, looking for any signs of spider bite poisoning.

Nothing. There was nothing about a bluish-white spider, let alone the side effects. His finger stopped moving as his eyes read, _Wayv Genetics moves research beyond single cell organisms and has begun experimentation on insects, most notably, spiders._ He quickly tapped on the link, scrolling through paragraphs explaining the experiments, finally landing on a photo of a bluish-white spider.

Hyuck frowned. Was he bitten by a spider that was jacked on a bunch of chemicals? But he shouldn’t be getting spider characteristics, right? That wasn’t possible. Right?

Above him, the bell rung, signaling the end of first class. Hyuck couldn’t stay. There was no way he was going to sit in a class when he didn’t know what was going on.

Taking one last gulp of air, he pushed to his feet, grabbing his backpack, and stepping out of the bathroom.

He regretted it almost instantly. Everything was loud again, the low chatter of the dozens of students in the hall amplified in his head. And now, he was terribly aware of how they were looking at him. Were they looking at him? Was all this in his head again? _Does everyone know? Did anyone see?_

Hyuck felt like everyone could hear his own thoughts, given how loud they were to him.

He needed to get out of here. Go home to figure out what was happening. Maybe go to Wayv Genetics himself and ask them what do to. It’s their spider after all. Hyuck hiked up his backpack onto his shoulders and hurried downstairs, shouldering past the groups of people who liked to walk way too slow for anyone’s liking.

He had crossed down another hall, the exit appearing in his vision when a body stepped in front of him. Hyuck looked up.

“Where do you think you’re going, freak?” Anthony smirked.

 _Not now. For the love of God, why does he want to do this now?_ Hyuck set his jaw. “Get out of my way,” He gritted out, moving to push past Anthony and his stinky group of friends.

A hand shoved him back. “Or what?” Anthony crooned, his friends laughing like it was the funniest thing he had ever said. “What’s a little orphan boy like you going to do? Who are you going to run to?”

Hyuck rolled his eyes, unfazed at the jab. This was predictable. “Jesus, Anthony, how old are you? Come up with something new, I’ve heard all this before.”

Anthony leaned down, towering over Hyuck whose back had hit the lockers behind him, cornering him with nowhere else to go. “I’m asking you, freak,” Anthony said lowly. “Who are you going to run to? Your pretty brother?” A jolt passed through Hyuck again. “Your brother looks nice enough, I think. He’d look real good in a little—”

Hyuck saw red. He moved before he could stop himself. He brought his leg up, planting it firmly against Anthony’s abdomen and _pushed._ Anthony, who was at least sixty pounds heavier than Hyuck himself, went flying across the hall, slamming into the lockers opposite. Anthony bounced off the lockers, leaving a small dent in the flimsy metal, and landed on the ground with a groan.

For a moment, no one moved. Hyuck stood perfectly still. The others stared at him with open mouths. He did _that_. That strength came out of him. How? He could barely beat Taeyong in an arm-wrestling match and he just _flung_ Anthony across the hall.

“Oh, you _bitch_ ,” Anthony hissed, sheer rage contorting his features.

Hyuck stayed only to watch Anthony get one knee underneath him, and then he took off, bolting towards the exit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> did anyone get the disney reference?? also booooo anthony >:( thank you for the read!!! the next part will be up soon!! (in like a few days!!)


	3. parkour

Hyuck hurtled down the street, Anthony and the others following him close behind. _Come on,_ he internally groaned. Why did this have to happen now? He had to figure out what was happening to him, not run from a couple of very angry kids.

Hyuck was small enough to slip by people muttering quiet apologies as he pushed to put more distance between him and his pursuers. Anthony and his friends were rudely shoving people and were covering more ground being careless as Hyuck tried to avoid getting in pedestrians’ way.

His feet hit the concrete, and Hyuck was feeling every reverberation that it sent up his legs and up his body. He felt like he was in full control of the way he was moving, which was a stark contrast to how he was feeling earlier that day. If he could just get these idiots off his back, he could take time to find out _why_ he was feeling all these ways.

“Hey! Stop!” He heard one of them yell behind him, and Hyuck threw himself down an alleyway. This particular alleyway harbored the back ends of the shops on the main street. Employees were busy hauling boxes and crates of goods into their respective stores to later take stock of. Hyuck pushed through.

Somehow, he found it in himself to gracefully leap over a stack of boxes, landing on his feet before he continued to run. Shouts began echoing as Anthony and his friends unsettled those carefully stacked boxes as they chased him. Hyuck focused on the four-way intersection ahead, dropping low to slide over the slick road under a long wooden beam being carried by two workers. He snapped back up to his feet and bolted towards the intersection.

Nothing was registering in his mind anymore. None of his own thoughts, at least. He was running on sheer instinct and adrenaline.

“When I get my hands on you, it’s _over_!” Anthony shouted, and Hyuck kept running.

_Why is this happening to me,_ he mourned. What did he do to deserve this? How did the universe randomly select one of almost eight billion people and make _him_ suffer like this? And for what? Just for some sticky hands? Major sensory overload? What kind of—

Hyuck was so distracted by his thoughts that he completely missed the car speeding towards the intersection he was currently in the middle of. He managed to see the wide panicked eyes of the driver behind the wheel.

And then he felt the same shock shoot throughout his body.

Hyuck would argue that it wasn’t him. That it was his body on auto pilot, running on some deranged combination of hyperactivity and adrenaline. He felt his feet leave the ground, and then he was swinging his arms in midair as he _flipped over_ the car. By his next blink, he had landed in a crouched position, feeling the impact safely disperse throughout his body, none being taken by his legs, which should have been broken by the height he had just jumped.

Hyuck paused in that position, arms out to balance himself from toppling over. What just happened? He...jumped, no, _flipped,_ over a car. How was that possible? He should have broken bones, but instead, he was reeling from simply being able to breathe.

“Stop moving!”

Hyuck whipped his head around. Anthony and his friends had managed to get through the alleyway and were approaching the intersection. Hyuck didn’t have time to understand how he had nearly missed a car accident. He scrambled up to his feet and darted forward, further into the tangled mess of New York’s back alleyways.

He made a hard left, grabbing the edge of the building’s corner to help himself pivot in that direction, but was immediately yanked back. Hyuck stared at his hand stuck to the building. “Not now, not now,” He muttered to himself, trying desperately to pull his hand away. This had to be one of his worst days ever. That’s all this was. A really bad day. Tomorrow he’d wake up, and everything would be back to normal.

“There!”

_Shit._ Hyuck braced a foot against the brick wall and pulled with all his might. Still, his hand remained impossibly stuck. He gritted his teeth, trying again and again, but he never moved. Anthony was getting closer. Hyuck could hear their footsteps. Or heartbeats. He didn’t really know. He just had to get _away_.

“Come on, come on, _come on_.” He pulled on his arm, jaw aching from grinding his teeth from the exertion. It would be so pathetic if he got beat up in an alleyway just because his damn hand was magically glued to the wall. He wouldn’t even be able to try to fight his way out. Once word got out, it would be the end for him. No one would look at him differently than the weak kid who was mercilessly picked on by some assholes.

“Gotcha,” Anthony panted, arriving a few feet from the corner.

Hyuck whirled around, his heart in his throat. He backed up as far as his hand would allow him to. “Listen,” He began as strongly as he could. “Something is going on. I have no idea what it is, but I need to figure it out,” He explained, pushing down on the fear that was creeping up his spine.

Anthony wholly ignored him. “You don’t just get to kick me like that and get away with it,” He growled, stalking closer.

“I wouldn’t come any closer if I were you,” Hyuck warned, all his senses suddenly tingling again. This time, he sensed the shock before he felt it, giving himself the second he needed to brace for the jolt riding up his whole body.

Anthony lunged, and like last time, Hyuck was on auto pilot.

Anthony’s fist swung over Hyuck’s head as he ducked. Hyuck snapped up again, leaning forward as he shot up, ramming his shoulder into Anthony. Anthony staggered back and Hyuck felt a dull pain in his shoulder.

“Just walk away,” Hyuck tried again.

Anthony launched himself again, bringing his fist up. Hyuck backed up against the wall, and when his body told him to, he jerked to the side. Anthony’s fist collided with the brick wall, and for the second time that day, the boy fell to the ground moaning in pain.

Like that, Hyuck let his senses and his body react. He dodged every punch, every jab, he landed his own kicks, swift and hard to the remaining bullies. Less than two minutes later, every boy of the group that had chased him were on the ground, mewling in pain and cradling their various body parts. Hyuck remained standing, his hand still stuck to the wall, staring in disbelief at the damage he had done.

He felt the now familiar buzz in his system, telling him to get away before someone came and saw him here. Still running on instinct, he placed his other hand, gently, calmly, onto the wall. Something shifted within him. Whatever was happening to him was a part of him now. It was ingrained into his system, and something told him that he wasn’t going to be able to get rid of it. It fit him like a second skin.

Hyuck gripped the crevice of the wall and gasped as he began to climb. He scaled the building all by himself, using his sticky hands to pull himself onto the roof above. Hyuck stared at his hands. Nothing changed physically. He still had his long slender fingers, the rough finger pads, the veins on the back of his hands. But somehow, they were different.

He heard a groan from below and he peered over the edge. Anthony’s eyes widened from his position still on the ground. “Hey, man, we were just joking, alright? Just don’t…don’t do that again, please.”

Anthony saying _please_? To _him?_ Hyuck scoffed. “Stay out of my way then,” He shot back, mildly surprised at how eagerly Anthony nodded. Hyuck pulled away from the edge and scanned the area he was in. Miraculously, he had already made it halfway back to his place.

He’d go home first. And then he’d do some research. And _then_ he would see what else his body could do. Hyuck slipped on his hood, satisfied with his new plan. He looked for the fire escape, but the zap that trickled up through his blood stream pulled him back.

Okay, then. He’d find out what his body could do _first._ And then he’d do the research.

He took a few steps back, eyes locking onto the flat expanse of the roof across from him. Hyuck again sensed the prick, and the second he felt it, he took off running. His feet left the edge and then he was soaring across the roof, kicking his legs and swinging his arms to gain momentum. Hyuck felt his stomach lurch up, and before he knew it, his feet hit the ground of the roof and he tucked himself into a ball, rolling over before rising back up to his feet again.

He was okay. He had cleared the jump. Hyuck even patted himself down, feeling no cuts or bruises on his body. He let out a breathy laugh. Whatever this was, it was working for him.

Hyuck settled his eyes on the next roof over. “Okay. I can do this.” He felt around for that tingling sense, and as he felt the jolt, he took off, leaping from roof from roof, flying over the alleys of New York, never once losing his footing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> parkour!!


	4. whatever happens, happens

The internet, believe it or not, was absolutely not helpful. If the results didn’t come up with anti-poison drugs, then they came up as death and even offered ads related to nearby funeral homes. Nothing about the strange tingling sense he was feeling. Even the Wayv Genetics site had a single announcement of the spiders and then there was nothing. As if the project had come to a screeching halt and the whole company dropped it.

Hyuck shook his head and shut his laptop, falling back onto his bed. He rubbed at his eyes. “There’s nothing I can do about this, is there,” He whispered to no one. The resounding silence sounded awfully a lot like _there’s shit you can do about this_.

How was he going to break this to Taeyong? _Hey, by the way, I have really sticky hands, and I’m like super strong now. Also, I have a sixth sense or something. Where did all this come from? Oh, I don’t know, a blueish-white spider I found on a roof._

Hyuck pressed his face into a pillow muffling a scream. There was _no_ way he could tell Taeyong that, let alone anyone else. He wasn’t really sure of what to do. He couldn’t tell anyone, there was no way to reverse what was happening to him, and Hyuck was starting to get tired of worrying about himself. Whatever happens, happens, right? Taeyong used to say that. Things happen for a reason. They just have to roll with the punches and keep their heads above water.

Hyuck removed the pillow from his face. _Whatever happens, happens._ Fine. He would make this work. Whatever _this_ was. He’d pretend it wasn’t there. He can carry on his day, go to the café like they do, and no one had to know. Perfect. He closed his eyes, repeating the mantra over and over again in his head. _Whatever happens, happens._

_******************************_

_Whatever happens, happens,_ was reeling through his mind a week later while Hyuck watched a man in a cap snatch a woman’s purse right out of her hands and took off, running right towards his direction.

A part of him was firmly set on looking the other way and letting the cops and actual professionals handle it. But the other part of him, the part that was learning to deal with the sudden shocks that still ran through him, that part telling him that Hyuck could stop the man easily.

And Hyuck, who had spent the last week trying to ignore that part of him, did what he always did. He gave in.

The man was right in front of him when Hyuck stepped out, bracing himself. He and the man crashed into each other, but while Hyuck remained standing, the man fell back onto the ground.

“Oh, shit, I’m so sorry,” Hyuck said, feeling that tingling feeling course through him. “I’m so sorry, let me help you.” He bent down, grabbing the man’s arm and hauling him up to his feet. Hyuck didn’t give him the opportunity to say anything as he fervently dusted down the man’s clothes. “I am _so_ sorry, I got dust all over you, here let me help.” Every pat got more and more aggressive until he was sure he was just hitting him. “I didn’t even see you, my goodness,” He chastised himself, hearing how silly he sounded. Still, he was brushing and dusting away, going all the way down to the man’s shoes.

“Get off me!” The man finally grunted, pushing Hyuck away. Hyuck stumbled back, and the man rushed past him, giving him a weird look.

Hyuck watched him go, stumbling over his shoelaces that Hyuck had managed to knot together while he was helping him up. A moment later, the cops were on him.

Satisfied, Hyuck turned, twirling the purse around a finger. He swiftly left it hanging on a chair and kept on walking, knowing that the rightful owner would take it back.

So, yes. Hyuck had been giving in more and more into whatever calling was within him, but he knew he was still holding back. He was still holding onto the hope that everything would be totally normal, that these new powers weren’t going to get in his way. Truth be told, he was afraid of them. If he really did give in all the way, would everything change? Would he have to force himself to be someone he’s not?

The thoughts plagued him. Instead, he pushed them all away and allowed the bare minimum to trickle into his life. There was a clear and thick line in the sand and Hyuck made sure he could see it from miles away. Under _no_ circumstances was he going to cross it.

Hyuck got close sometimes, however. The closest he got so far was when he had spent four days developing webs and a web shooter. He, using Yangyang as his lookout, spent his class time pouring through books and reading several websites about the basic components of spider webs, eventually creating his own web fluid in his room one late night.

Explaining to Taeyong the strange thumps and the smells coming from his room was hard enough since his brother was always so particular about keeping their home as clean as possible. But some loose lies and careful maneuvering of his backpack into his room eased Taeyong off Hyuck’s back, and by the end of the third week, Hyuck was standing in his room, his bedroom door wide open. He had lifted his arm out towards the door, used his two center fingers to press down on the palm switch, initiating the pressure of the twin wrist clasps. Immediately, a sheer, thin, sticky web shot out, hitting the doorknob across his room. Hyuck twisted his wrist and the door swung close, clicking as it shut all the way.

For convenience, he had said to himself. If he had spider abilities, he might as well take advantage of the webs. That was it. Convenience. Nothing more.

*****************************

“Taeyong hyung?” Hyuck asked one night while they sat at the breakfast table where their takeout was littered across the surface. “Do you ever doubt yourself?”

The jolts and the shocks were getting worse. They were happening more frequently, and Hyuck was feeling like those first few hours after he had been bitten. He was starving but his appetite was gone, he was hearing too many things too loudly again, and it was getting harder to control his sticky hands like he had once figured out. The worst part of it was that he _knew_ why this was happening to him again.

Hyuck threw himself back into his normal life. He ignored the sharp bursts of electricity that exploded in his spine. He didn’t scale buildings, he played his music loudly to drown out unwanted heartbeats, and his excuse for not using his webs was that he very busy sewing together a polyester suit and mask to hold his web fluids and so he wouldn’t be recognized should he be climbing buildings again (not necessary at all, but it was his excuse). He stopped because none of that was _normal_. He wasn’t normal. Hyuck for the longest time wanted to fit in, and this whole spider thing was making it difficult for him.

And if he was ignoring all these things happening to him, why was it _him_ in the first place? Out of everyone, why did that spider bite Lee Donghyuck? Was he supposed to be fulfilling some role? Did he even have a role?

Thus, the doubt settled in. It crept slowly and methodically from a corner of his mind, eventually leaving Hyuck to lie awake at night thinking about this power and responsibility he was given. Doubt, however, did nothing to cushion the shocks he was still getting.

Taeyong set down his little takeout box, reaching for a bottle of water. “Are you only asking because you’re about to show me a bad grade?” He lifted an eyebrow.

Hyuck scoffed, despite himself. “Funny joke, hyung, have you ever considered standup comedy,” He deadpanned. Taeyong frowned at his sarcasm. “Of course I don’t have a bad grade. I’m asking seriously.”

Taeyong must have sensed the gravity in his words because he said, “all the time, actually. There’s a lot of things I’m not sure about and I’m worried that I’ll mess up.”

“But you haven’t,” Hyuck pointed out. They had a house, Taeyong could afford rent, they ate every night, and Hyuck wasn’t the resident bad boy everyone thought he was. Surely Taeyong did something right.

“The worry is still there,” Taeyong said. “When our…when we moved in with Uncle Taeil, I used to ask him a million questions a college kid shouldn’t have asked. I knew we couldn’t stay with him forever, and I was planning for the two of us years down the line. I was scared,” He admitted, and Hyuck chewed on his lip. “I wanted us to live as normally as we could, and I wanted you to be as happy as you could, and I won’t lie, I could feel the weight on my shoulders.”

Hyuck wished over and over again that he was a little bit older, just enough that he could have lessen that load back then. Words wouldn’t be able to describe how thankful and grateful he was for Taeyong.

Taeyong chuckled lightly. “It took about a year of living on our own that I started to fall into a routine without the doubt.” He gestured to the trash in front of them. “Routines like how it’s your turn to clear the table.” He gave a pointed look to Hyuck.

Hyuck groaned. “The moment’s ruined.”

Taeyong laughed again. “The point is, doubt is inevitable. But it’s not permanent. There comes a time where you have to face it head on and decide if the doubt eating away at your mind will change anything about the reality. It doesn’t, by the way.”

“It doesn’t what?”

Taeyong turned to look at him, his eyes boring into Hyuck as if he was openly and clearly reading every secret Hyuck had. “Doubt doesn’t change reality.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next chapter is explosive, i'm so excited for you to read it!


	5. all superheros start somewhere

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> longer chapter as an apology for not updating earlier!! thank you for the read!

It wasn’t that Hyuck was a bad listener or anything. He had actually repeated the conversation from the takeout night in his head millions of times over the course of the next three days, trying and failing to let his doubt be erased by Taeyong’s brave words.

But since the conversation, the shocks in his body continued to grow exponentially every day, and Hyuck was starting to get tired of holding himself back from losing it every time his spine went rigid. He felt like he was constantly hearing noises in his head, making even his music sound soft in comparison. Sounds, thoughts and feelings whirled around his mind, threatening to loom and grow bigger than what he could hold.

Until now.

Now, he stared at the tv in their living room. The news channel had interrupted whatever was on earlier, the flashing red and white lights claiming _breaking news_. Hyuck stood frozen, seeing the bank on the screen, a camera far above the building taking the shot. Bright lights from the helicopter circling the building moved slowly over the tall structure, lighting up the line of police some distance away while they waited for something to happen inside.

His mind went static silent.

So he read instead.

_Armed robbery of Wells Fargo Bank on Madison Avenue. Police say there are four armed suspects holding the patrons of the bank hostage. Shots have been heard, but it is unclear if there are any casualties. So far, all orders have been halted, police are hesitating to move when people’s lives are still on the line. We will keep you updated as we wait._

Hyuck’s heart dropped to the floor, his whole body numbed over.

 _Taeyong._ Taeyong had texted him earlier that he was stopping by the bank on the way home, and he wasn’t home now. Hyuck stared and stared at the screen. Taeyong was _there._ He was with the armed criminals and Hyuck didn’t know what was going to happen. He wished his body would react. A shock, a shiver, he wanted his head to swim in the noises, but there was _nothing._ Hyuck hated his body in that moment. All his insides were twisted up, battering against his ribcage. Why won’t he _react_?

With shaking hands, he reached for his phone and pulled up Taeyong’s contact. Maybe he was on the way home. Maybe he had missed the robbery. Maybe he was standing in the apartment foyer and Hyuck was freaking out for nothing.

Still, as he opted to text instead of call, he had a feeling that his fears were going to be justified.

**_[6:42 pm]_ ** _hyung where are u_

**_[6:42 pm]_ ** _they’re saying that there’s a robbery at the bank are u still there? please tell me ur on the way home_

**_[6:43 pm]_ ** _hyung say something_

Hyuck stared at his phone for a minute longer. No grey bubble with three dots appeared, signifying that Taeyong was responding. Hyuck ran his hands through his hair. What was going to happen? Even the police didn’t know what was going to happen to the hostages. Those criminals were _armed._ Armed enough to halt all forces from storming inside. If someone didn’t figure out something soon, a lot of people could die tonight, Taeyong included.

The thought settled in Hyuck’s gut like lead, heavy and cold. They didn’t make it this far for Taeyong to die in some bank robbery. They were an unlucky pair, but they couldn’t end like this. Hyuck didn’t know what he would do if it did.

Slowly, as if it weren’t himself but some other force controlling him, his gaze slid from the news reports to his backpack that was carelessly thrown on the ground from when he had gotten home from school. The zipper was open, exposing the mess that was his assignments and notebooks and whatever else he had shoved into his bag. Peeking through all the papers was a flash of red.

Hyuck tugged it out, kneeling by the couch. He held it up, seeing his own reflection in the eyes of the mask that he had made for himself. It might have been a climactic moment, perhaps he’d feel that jolt again or his senses could kick into overdrive. But Hyuck still felt nothing in himself. He turned back to the tv, reading the same headlines over and over again, his phone still silent on the floor beside him.

He sucked in a breath, looking back at the mask.

Sirens sounded far off in the distance.

Hyuck clutched the mask, looking up at the skyline of New York, beautiful as always, shining and twinkling through the window. New York needed someone to look after it the same way Taeyong looked after him. He couldn’t be Taeyong, but Hyuck could _try_. For the city. For his brother. For himself.

Hyuck rose to his feet, mask gripped between his fingers.

**************************************

Wind tore at his hair as he stood at the top of Citi Bank on Third Avenue, Times Square lit up like it was Christmas at his back. Beyond that was the Empire State Building, piercing the clouds and casting the sky around it into a deep blue like the lights on the tip of the building.

In front of him was the long expanse of Third Avenue, which would eventually lead to the Madison Avenue intersection. That’s where the Wells Fargo Bank was. That’s where he needed to be.

Hyuck toed the edge of the building. He was several hundred feet above the ground, no one even aware of the boy standing on the edge of one of the tallest buildings on this street. Cars and vehicles packed the roads below him, the night still active as it was during the day. Hyuck squinted across the landscape. Twenty-eight streets. He had twenty-eight streets to get across before he made it to 86th.

He stepped up to the ledge, his toes hanging off to the hundreds of feet that separated him from immediate death of the concrete below. Okay. _Okay._ Taeyong’s words swirled through his mind, as crystal clear as the lights dotting the skyline.

_Doubt is inevitable. But it’s not permanent. There comes a time where you have to face it head on and decide if the doubt eating away at your mind will change anything about the reality._

Hyuck took in a breath, staring down at the ground with furrowed brows. This was reality. This was _his_ reality.

He pulled down his mask, shutting out the city.

 _Doubt doesn’t change reality_.

Hyuck closed his eyes.

He lifted one foot, leaned with the other, and he dropped.

Immediately his stomach lurched up into his throat, choking off his impending scream. For a moment, his world became a blur of lights whizzing as he flailed his arms and legs. He spun and flipped around in the air, hurtling to the ground, trying to get a sense of up and down.

And then he felt it.

The shock, the jolt, the tingling sensation that was muted for most of the night.

For the first time, Hyuck opened the floodgates. No hesitation. No fears. No doubts. He let the electricity flow through him, every single one of his senses snapping to full alertness. His eyes focused on the ground that was getting closer and closer still. He stilled, waiting for his instincts to kick in.

Something sparked within him and he twisted around, facing the top of the building he had jumped from, its peak getting smaller as he fell. Hyuck extended both arms, tapped on the buttons in his palms and watched as twin webs soared out of his wrists and disappeared somewhere above him.

He fell for a few more painstaking seconds, grunting as he forced more of the web fluid out of the gadgets on his wrists. And then, he felt the slight thud as his webs found home. A second later, his whole body jerked up, his toes scraping the concrete below him before he was sent flying through the air again. This time, he was soaring.

His once blurry world of glass skyscrapers and bright lights became clear as his gaze was set on the next building, and then the next, methodically and rhythmically shooting out strings of webs that latched onto the sides of those buildings. Hyuck pulled, swinging with his weight and the webs before letting go, free falling again, and then tapping out a new web.

He tucked in his feet as he swung low over the traffic below. Hyuck shot out another web, keeping one hand on it while he landed in the middle of the road, running beside the cars and trucks. Another web whizzed out somewhere above him, lifted him off the ground as a tall delivery truck stalled in the middle of an intersection. Hyuck flipped forward, running the length of the truck before hopping from cab to cab, eyes set on a new building.

He felt so light, his webs doing the most to carry him as he deftly and swiftly darted over cars and buses. He passed street after street, running alongside office buildings, hospitals, whatever was beneath his feet at any given time. His stomach no longer jumped to his throat. His heart was steady, and his mind was clear, following the steady rhythm he had set for himself. _Shoot, swing, shoot, swing._

Hyuck caught sight of 84th street and pulled himself up to the top of the next tallest building he could find. He crouched, his fingers keeping him steady on the slanted roof, and pushed up his mask. He was breathing hard, but there wasn’t an ounce of fatigue in him. He was exhilarated. He laughed loudly to himself, knowing no one was watching him. He did it. He made it.

It was the sound of static cackling that turned his attention to the scene in front of him.

“NYPD!” An officer called using a megaphone to carry his voice into the bank. “We’re giving you one more chance to release the hostages. Or we will send the special forces in!”

A moment of silence as Hyuck watched carefully from the roof. Then, loud pops. The officers all ducked behind their car doors and shields. Glass shattered at the front of the bank and Hyuck could make out holes in the ceiling as well. Someone screamed from inside, loud and shrill.

Hyuck set his jaw, tugging the mask back down. He made it this far. He could go further. He backed up, setting his eyes on the helicopter circling the bank. With one breath and all the energy coursing through him, Hyuck surged forward, stepping off the roof the same time he launched his webs. The sticky substance caught on to the bottom of the helicopter, and Hyuck pulled, letting himself soar over the two streets of cop cars and other emergency vehicles. When he let go, he positioned himself to send his feet through an already existed hole in the roof- the weakest part.

As he predicted, his smashed through, the rest of the glass shattering around him as he landed inside of the bank.

What he didn’t account for was the landing. There was a counter instead of a flat floor, and his footing slipped. He crashed over the counter, landing in a lump on the other side. “Fuck,” he groaned, sitting upright and rubbing his head.

Then he took in his surroundings. Right. The bank.

He shot up to his feet, facing the four criminals and the hostages cowering in a corner who all stared at him with wide eyes and open mouths. In the crowd, he caught sight of annoyingly bright pink hair and found his brother kneeling on the ground some distance away, eyes wide and blown as he fixed them on Hyuck.

 _Thank you,_ he thought mindlessly. Taeyong was still alive. He was still okay. Hyuck gave him a little wave before realizing that he and Taeyong weren’t the only ones in the room.

He cleared his throat a little awkwardly. Sure, he might have swung all the way through downtown Manhattan, but he didn’t know what heroes did. _Hero_? Was that what he was? He supposed he hadn’t saved anyone yet, so the term was still up for debate.

“Stop…whatever it is you’re doing,” He said lamely. _Damn, Hyuck, no one’s shivering in fear because of you. Good one._

The man in the ski mask closest to him lifted a weapon, and Hyuck didn’t recognize what it was. It wasn’t a gun, though it was shaped like one. A dozen blue disks glowed by the handle. Strange. “Who are you,” The man growled.

“I’m, uh…” Wow, he _really_ didn’t think any of this through. “I’m, um…S-Spider…man,” He struggled to get out, trying to sound as intimidating as he wanted to.

“He sounds like he’s seven,” Another one commented.

“What? I sound like I’m _seven?_ ” Maybe Hyuck should be more careful about his word choice, but come on, he did _not_ sound like he was prepubescent. “Are you listening to yourself? You sound like a chain smoker.”

“What’s with the spider mask, kid?” The other one asked. At least he had a normal gun.

“I could ask you that yourself, Mr. Ski Mask,” Hyuck shot back, a little defensively. 

“Idiot,” One of criminal’s partners snarled at him, and the poor man had the decency to look a little offended.

“You fools managed to take over this bank?” Hyuck didn’t know what he was expecting, but he was _talking_ to these people more than fighting. He figured he could just talk them into giving up at this rate. What a bunch of dumbasses.

The one with the real gun lifted it and pointed it him. “Yeah. You’re not stopping us.”

Hyuck scoffed, setting his hands on his hips. “Of course I am. I didn’t swing halfway across the city to watch you without any popcorn. This would be a lame movie, anyway. You guys really are dumbasses.”

“Enough!” Hyuck ducked back down under the counter as the man fired the gun. Vaguely he wondered if he lucked out or if his senses detected the bullet before his mind could even register that bullets were raining around him.

Like back on top of Citi Bank, he let the shock flow through him. He moved on his instincts. Hyuck shot out a web, pulling the giant clock off the wall across from him. In one movement he leapt up from his hiding place, twisting himself and the clock with him, flinging it at the man who was shooting at him.

He heard the crash and the shooting stopped, but then the other three were all lifting their own weapons. Hyuck fired a web at the ceiling and left the ground as more bullets sliced through where he was standing seconds ago. He moved quickly, his hands and feet sticking to the ceiling as he crawled between the light fixtures.

The others kept shooting, hitting the lights and the ceiling around him, but Hyuck kept moving. As the bank grew dimmer with each busted light, Hyuck crawled closer and closer to the idiots in the center of the bank.

When the bulb right next to him shattered, he dropped down. The glass had blinded the man who had shot at it in the first place, and Hyuck’s feet lashed out as hard as he could as he landed back on the floor. The man toppled over with a grunt, and Hyuck turned his attention to the others.

He faced the barrel of a gun and immediately flicked his wrist. The web caught the side of the gun, and with a tug, Hyuck managed to swing the man’s hand to hit himself in the head. He laughed, despite the situation. “Oh, _man_ , why are you hitting yourself?” He swung the web back and forth, repeatedly hitting the man in the head with his own gun.

He felt a jolt, and Hyuck spun around, giving the man one last hit and ripping the gun away from his hands. It clattered somewhere out of his reach, but Hyuck didn’t mind. He was facing Clock Man again. He tilted his head. “I threw a clock at you. How are you still standing?”

He fired his web before the man could move, a splotch of web clumping over one of the man’s eyes. He stumbled back, and Hyuck took the opportunity to swing up, and shove both of his feet into the man’s stomach, sending him staggering back over some turned over file cabinets.

Something whirred behind him and Hyuck narrowly dove out of the way as a blue disk shot past where he was a moment ago. “What is _that_?” He asked, standing some distance away, ready to jump again.

“Come find out,” The man growled, hefting up the blue weapon again.

Hyuck back flipped out of the way again as he sent another glowing disk in his direction. He took a quick inventory of the damage he had done so far. Two men were down, either knocked out cold or pinned down by a light fixture (courtesy Hyuck). One of them was firing strange blue disks at him now, which left one more.

It was where Hyuck messed up.

He was busy scanning the bank floor, searching for that last man, when something hit his shoulder hard. He was thrown off balance, crashing to the floor.

And then, he felt a shock. Not like the ones that he was used to. This one was pure electricity. Painful buzzing that made all his muscles contract and spasm. Hyuck screamed from the ground, writhing from the electrical pulses the disk was emitting. Every nerve was on fire, stars danced in his vision, blacking out for a second before he was pulled back into the agony that was threatening to split his body apart.

He needed to calm down. He needed to let his senses take over. Hyuck rolled over to his back with gritted teeth. Frantically, he searched for that familiar tingling sense within him. He knew it wasn’t muted. He just had to find it.

His brain felt every painful pulse and he winced, searching harder. Finally, he mentally wrapped a hand around the familiar sensation, gripping onto it as if it would save his life. Hyuck ground his jaw, forcing himself to reach for the disk lodged in his shoulder. With short breaths, he held it tightly and yanked hard.

The disk came off, the electricity immediately pulling away from his system. Hyuck let his hand drop, the now dull and useless disk falling out of his hand as he laid on his back, panting hard to catch his breath. He felt the cut the disk had made in his shoulder when it had torn into his skin, but at least he could finally see without the stars in his eyes.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw boots approach him. Hyuck allowed himself to be hauled up into a sitting position by the man who had shot him. He went limp, leaning against the counter as the man crouched down in front of him.

“Not so quick on your backchat now, huh,” He drawled, lifting the weapon one more time. This time, he aimed at the center of Hyuck’s head.

Hyuck left it up to his senses again, waiting until the last second to drive the heel of his palm up, knocking the gun back hard enough that it hit the man in his head. Hyuck leapt up to his feet, sending a thick wad of the web into the muzzle of the gun, jamming it just as the man carelessly pulled the trigger. He used another web to yank the man back behind the counter, sending him off with a square punch to his jaw, before swinging away.

A small blast went off behind the sturdy counter, a bright blue light flaring up once. The man yelped, and then went silent.

Hyuck straightened. Three down. One more.

“Move and I blow his brains out.”

Hyuck turned slowly, his hands up. The scene in front of him sent his heart rate spiking, fear coating every inch of him from his head to his toes.

The final criminal had yanked up Taeyong from the crowd. He held the pink haired man in front of him, his thick arm around Taeyong’s throat while he held the gun inches away from Taeyong’s temple. Taeyong was already struggling to breathe. Hyuck could tell in the way he was gasping for air every chance he could, weakly trying to scratch at the man’s arm to let him go.

“Let him go,” Hyuck said lowly, his hands still beside his head.

“Go out there and tell the police to fuck off,” The man snarled.

Hyuck swallowed, thinking of what he could do. Taeyong made a small sound. “Let him go first.” He took half a step forward.

The man dragged Taeyong back one step, waving the gun closer to Taeyong’s head. “Stay where you are,” The man demanded, and Hyuck listened.

“Listen,” Hyuck began. “This is between you and me, right? Let him go, and I’ll talk to the police.” Would he? Hyuck didn’t think that far. Right now, all he wanted was for Taeyong not be in the way of that gun.

“I don’t think so,” The man said. “You’re running out of time.”

Hyuck was getting desperate. “Please, just _let him go_.” Every part of him was on edge. He was balancing on the thin line of staying where he was or jumping into action to do literally _anything_. But he knew that if he moved, there would be a bullet in his brother’s head and Hyuck would never be able to live with that.

He waited with an abated breath. He felt like the whole world was waiting. Taeyong squirmed underneath the man’s grasp, and the man stared down Hyuck, eyes narrowing just an inch. It almost registered in Hyuck’s mind too late.

The man quickly shoved Taeyong away. The pink haired lost his footing and stumbled to the ground, his back pressed against the wall with his knees pulled close to him. The man took aim at Taeyong, standing only feet away. He wasn’t going to miss. Not from that distance.

Two things happened at once, and Hyuck wasn’t sure which was faster.

His spine shook. Hyuck tapped the button in his palm the same time the man pulled the trigger. Taeyong flinched, but the bullet never reached him.

Hyuck’s burst of web fluid smacked into the bullet mid flight, redirecting its course out the bank window to its left. Before anyone else could move, Hyuck shot out two webs. One hit Taeyong in the arm, and Hyuck pulled. Taeyong was safely in his arms a blink later, and Hyuck instantly felt better. The other web that was shot out hit the man’s hand, sticking it against the same window that the bullet had blown through. Hyuck’s final web landed on the man’s other hand, completely pinning him to the window.

For a moment, no one moved. The man against the window grunted, struggling against the webs keeping him in place, his finger no longer over the trigger, but everyone was staring at Hyuck. Including Taeyong still in Hyuck’s protective grasp.

He cleared his throat. “Um…” He began wondering if he should mask his voice somehow. Would Taeyong know? “Are you okay?”

Taeyong nodded his head, slowly removing himself from Hyuck’s arms. “I’m—I’m fine.” He stammered. His big eyes peered into Hyuck, and Hyuck had to remind himself that he had a mask on. There was no way Taeyong would know. Right? “Thank you,” He finally said, politely. “Sorry for staring, I just feel like I know you somehow.”

Hyuck coughed. “Well, I don’t think so. I’m…um…new here.” Mentally, he facepalmed. _I’m new here? Just stop talking._

“In any case,” Taeyong said with a warm smile, “thank you.”

Hyuck nodded, afraid that if he said anything else, he’d give away his identity. “Lead the others to safety,” He instructed, feeling strange that he was giving out orders to his older brother. His webs whizzed past, bringing the weapon with the blue disks into his hands. He gave it a quick glance over, catching sight of _Wayv Genetics_ printed on the side. He stored that information away for a later time. Everything was connected somehow, but he’d get into it later. Definitely not tonight. He passed it to Taeyong. “Give this to someone in a uniform.”

Taeyong nodded dutifully. He gave Hyuck one more look before he turned to face the other people still in the corner. By the time Taeyong looked back over his shoulder, Hyuck had swung back out of the bank, disappearing into the city once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was IT. THE scene. that scene in the movie was top tier nothing has ever beat it. a masterpiece. chef's kiss.


	6. sticky icky love and not just for taeyong

“Pick up some more laundry detergent today.”

“Okay.”

“And milk, we’re almost out.”

“Right.”

“Oh, wait, also grab some chocolates.”

Hyuck sighed loudly and paused from shoving all his things back into his backpack. “Why don’t you just go yourself?”

“Because it’s been your turn to go for the past two weeks,” Taeyong said with a pointed look. “And I’m busy tonight.”

Hyuck scoffed, tugging the zipper close. “I can’t believe you’re sending me away just to hang out with your boyfriend.”

“We’re not dating!” Taeyong protested, but Hyuck wasn’t hearing any of it.

“Yuta hyung and I made a deal that every time you say that, I get a dollar from him. So, _please_ , keep denying it.”

“Yuta thinks we’re dating?” Taeyong asked bewildered, looking absolutely mortified from where he was holding an armful of clothes he hadn’t decided to wear for the night. “I’m going to _end_ him,” Taeyong hissed, thinking about the next time he would see his co-worker and ‘best friend’, though the term was being used loosely in this context.

“Uncle Taeil thinks you’re dating,” Hyuck pointed out. “And thus, by extension, Jungwoo hyung knows too.”

“Jungwoo doesn’t even live in Manhattan,” Taeyong grumbled, throwing all his clothes into a heap on his bed.

Hyuck shrugged. “Jungwoo hyung is nosy and Uncle Taeil is this close from getting an engagement ring. I wouldn’t be surprised if Jungwoo hyung knew about your sweet potato addiction.” When Taeyong was staying on campus, his mini fridge was full of sweet potato flavored foods. It was embarrassing really, and Hyuck always complained when he went to visit.

“Great,” Taeyong mourned, digging through his pile. “Don’t stay out late tonight. Come home as soon as you’re done.”

Hyuck shouldered his backpack. “Wear that pink strawberry shirt,” He said on his way out. “I promise, he’ll swoon.”

“Lee Donghyuck, _leave!_ ”

Hyuck smiled to himself, leaving their apartment. Instead of taking the elevators down, he climbed the few flights of stairs up, shoving open the door leading to the terrace. He didn’t stop running, tugging on his backpack higher, aiming towards the edge of the building.

With his heart beating wildly in his chest, Hyuck leapt onto the ledge, and he jumped. He free fell, the wind crashing into him, running its fingers through his hair and bringing tears into his eyes. He whooped, twisting himself over to the side. A string of white web whizzed out, and Hyuck swung himself through the city.

He hopped over the cars stuck in traffic, feet light and easy, moving quickly down the street. With another pull of his webs, he rolled onto the top of another building. Using the momentum, he snapped back up to his feet and leapt off the roof, flipping over and over until he was dizzy and laughing.

He aimed for a high-rise building next. Hyuck swung in a wide arc, planting his feet on the face of the glass building, running sideways across the windows. One by one, he swung and hopped from building to building like it was his second nature. Hyuck savored the thrill, the way his feet would brush the road before his webs pulled him back up. He liked feeling like he could fly.

He felt like he was always on top of the world. There was no longer a need for him to find a pocket of silence in the middle of the city. When he was in the air, he was could feel that stillness. It wasn’t a place he needed to be physically, but Hyuck felt that peace, that calm, while he was alone and swinging over the traffic below. It was everything he was looking for.

When he finally landed in front of his school, his hair was sticking up in a million different ways, but he hurried inside anyway. Most of the school was out at the home football game. He could hear the announcer and the shouts from the stadium behind the school. Inside, he made his way through the empty hallways, heading towards the chem lab. He had wanted to test out new web fluids and see what else he could add to the suit. Tinkering around in the apartment was getting harder. Taeyong was nosy, and Hyuck on more than one occasion was stuck to the ceiling as Taeyong returned from work. He figured the chem lab would be the best place to experiment uninterrupted.

Only about an hour passed before Hyuck got everything he needed to know. He had new web fluid and he had managed to use a hardware on his suit to link up to a GPS system. Now, he wouldn’t have to scramble to find directions to a place. His suit would direct him itself.

Hyuck packed his things and left the building, thinking sadly about how Taeyong was going to be busy with Doyoung, and Hyuck would spend the rest of his night awkwardly in the middle of the two.

No matter what Taeyong said, he and Doyoung were in love. But not in the sweet, cutesy, way. It was sticky and icky, and when they weren’t making heart eyes at each other, they were at each other’s necks for the smallest things. Hyuck thought they should just kiss and get over it, but they seemed to thrive off the bickering.

Cheers erupted from the stadium again. Hyuck gave it a short thought and decided that he could watch the game for another hour or so before heading back. Word was that the star player Lee Jeno was supposed to play tonight, so it would be an interesting game to watch.

He slipped through the crowd, wearing their school colors and holding banners and posters. The opposing team sat on the other side, waving their own little banners and flags around. Hyuck climbed the stadium stands and took a seat in the corner, wincing at how cold the metal benches were.

He watched the game for a while. They were leading, and Hyuck had to admit that Jeno was outshining the other players on both teams. He watched Jeno cross the whole field with a huge gap between him and everyone else, scoring another touchdown for their school.

“Let’s go, Lee Jeno!”

He eyed the group of boys sitting to the side, wearing huge sweatshirts and waving around cups of ramen instead of posters and banners like everyone else. He smiled at the funny sight.

And then something tingled.

He followed on command, like he was used to. He trusted those new instincts, and he was familiar with them enough to know what it was, and where it was directing him to.

Slowly, Hyuck’s gaze slid from the group of boys loudly cheering to a single boy standing at the bottom of the stands. He held an ancient looking camera in his hands, and had it pointed at Hyuck.

Hyuck stared into the camera lens. The boy must have noticed because he quickly lowered his camera. Hyuck caught a flash of high cheekbones, wide, flustered, eyes and a small mouth in the shape of an ‘o’. The boy turned away with red ears, and Hyuck smiled to himself, knowing that the camera wasn’t on him for the rest of the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOOOOO we're at the end!! this was so fun to write and i lovedddd into the spiderverse and i needed hyuck to have a similar scene and so this fic was born. thank you ALWAYS for the read, for your kind words, and the kudos!! they always make my day! i think i want to write more with hyuck and the dreamie gang with little missions and stories, so if you have ideas or scenes you want to see, let me know!!! please i miss this world already. thank you lovelies again! see u next time!

**Author's Note:**

> i started this thinking it'd be like 4k at most and um...it wasn't :D i'm really happy with the way it came out though, and it was a good enough excuse to rewatch into the spiderverse :) i also loved revisiting this world with spidey-hyuck, and figured it would be a good idea to preface cameras and city lights with exactly how hyuck got his powers and how he dealt with it. and all your comments and kudos on cameras and city lights were really motivating and inspiring, so thank you!! as of right now, it has 1124 hits and 109 kudos WHICH IS CRAZY HELLO??#@$25@$% that's incredible and i was very touched by all the love it has and still is receiving and i hope this is just as fun and exciting! as always thank you for the read, thank you for your time, for all your kind words :) stay happy and stay healthy!! i love u allllll <3
> 
> let's be friends on twitter! i'm yelling about make a wish and all of resonance now so let's do it together!! let me know what your favorite song off the album is!! @moreeggstofry


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